Through the Years of Hip Hop, Vol. 1 - Graffiti

Rating:
Summary: Waste of space
Review: About time someone did a proper history or hip hop, graf and breakdancing. Unfortunately, this isnt it. It says 90 mins on the back and it only lasted 30 mins. The first 10 minutes was unrelated ... and [terrible] christmas music. The rest of the program was close ups of photos from Subway Art and Spray Can Art. I dont want to see the back of someones head for half of the program. If you want a proper history of hip hop, get Style Wars, Wild Style or anything else. This is awful and a complete waste of money. The music videos were a strange collection, but monie love still [disappointed me].

Rating:
Summary: Through The Years of Hip Hop
Review: Finally someone has taken on the task of telling the story of how hip hop was born. This DVD is unique because it combines education with entertainment. The collection of classic music videos from Run Dmc, Dana Dane, The Crash Crew, Special Ed and the others are just not found anywhere else. These guys are sure to start a trend. For the avid hip hop fan, it just doesn't get any better than this. When was the last time you saw one of De La Soul's or Rob Base & DJ Easy Rock early videos??? Then as if that wasn't enough they have produced a great documentary on the orgins of the four core elements of Hip Hop. The first part tells the story of Graffiti in the US. Its like these original pioneers are sitting in your living room telling their story. Great product. On a technical note, hats off to the editor!

Rating:
Summary: The real Hip Hop
Review: First of all I'd like to respond to the cat from England who
has no clue of what real Hip Hop culture is. Hip Hop culture is not just the four elements of Hip Hop,(Writing, B boying, DJing/Beatboxing,mcing)Its about a culture created by kids in the inner city streets. The first part of the documentary IS related because the title of the series is called "Through the
years of Hip Hop," So it is important to show people how this culture began! Then they give you a tight piece on Graffiti told by the masters. This project was praised by Zulu Nation for its authenticity as well as other pioneers. I follow Hip Hop and I know what's good for the culture and this DVD is an excellent addition to other classic productions like Style
Wars and Wild style. And yes Xmas music is real Hip Hop and so is "Through The Years." Learn the culture before you comment!

Rating:
Summary: Muy Bueno!
Review: For those who were around during th early years of hip hop before it's "trashification" with gangster crap (though recent releases have shown some improvement) or who are just interested in this era, this is very good. The documentary on graffiti really gets it right when it sets up what it was like to be a 70s child in the pre hip-hop era (having been one myself). The videos themselves range from interesting to good. A crude but appealing video of the Crash Crew gives you a good idea of what early hip hop was like. Then we have the classics of the era such as Run-DMC's Rock Box, Dana Dane, Rob Base, the young Queen Latifah, etc. The there's De La Soul's classic posse video "Buddy" which also includes a cameo by the young Latifah. This is a sweet video. I love the unity and positivitiy it represents among the Long Island-New Jersey rappers of that time. Too bad rap did not stay on this level. But in either case, watch it, learn, and enjoy.